Rare August tornado sends 30 to hospital in Tulsa

1of 11This photo shows damage to a Fridays restaurant after a storm moved through the area in Tulsa, Okla., Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017. A possible tornado struck near midtown Tulsa and causing power outages and roof damage to businesses. (Tom Gilbert/Tulsa World via AP)Photo: Tom Gilbert, MBI

2of 11This photo shows damage to a Fridays restaurant after a storm moved through the area in Tulsa, Okla., Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017. A possible tornado struck near midtown Tulsa and causing power outages and roof damage to businesses. (Tom Gilbert/Tulsa World via AP)Photo: Tom Gilbert, MBI

3of 11A man stands outside a Fridays restaurant after a storm moved through the area in Tulsa, Okla., Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017. A possible tornado struck near midtown Tulsa and causing power outages and roof damage to businesses. (Tom Gilbert/Tulsa World via AP)Photo: Tom Gilbert, MBI

4of 11Eight people at a TGI Fridays restaurant were hospitalized after a tornado struck a Tulsa shopping district.Photo: Tom Gilbert, MBI

5of 11A damaged Petsmart sign hangs after a storm moved through the area in Tulsa, Okla., Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017. A possible tornado struck near midtown Tulsa and causing power outages and roof damage to businesses. (Tom Gilbert/Tulsa World via AP)Photo: Tom Gilbert, MBI

6of 11A damaged Petsmart sign hangs after a storm moved through the area in Tulsa, Okla., Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017. A possible tornado struck near midtown Tulsa and causing power outages and roof damage to businesses. (Tom Gilbert/Tulsa World via AP)Photo: Tom Gilbert, MBI

8of 11A man stands near a damaged building after a storm moved through the area in Tulsa, Okla., Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017. A possible tornado struck near midtown Tulsa and causing power outages and roof damage to businesses. (Tom Gilbert/Tulsa World via AP)Photo: Tom Gilbert, MBI

9of 11A man stands near a damaged building after a storm moved through the area in Tulsa, Okla., Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017. A possible tornado struck near midtown Tulsa and causing power outages and roof damage to businesses. (Tom Gilbert/Tulsa World via AP)Photo: Tom Gilbert, MBI

OKLAHOMA CITY - A rare late summer tornado smashed into a shopping district of Tulsa early Sunday just hours after it was packed with people, sending more than two dozen people to hospitals including two with life-threatening injuries, many of them from restaurants that were either preparing to close or were still open.

No deaths were reported from the tornado that struck shortly after 1 a.m. in the midtown area of Tulsa, according to city of Tulsa spokeswoman Kim Meloy.

National Weather Service meteorologist Mike Teague said the tornado was rated an EF2, with wind speeds of 111-135 mph and that two smaller, "probably" EF0 tornadoes with winds of 65-85 mph were seen shortly afterward on radar near Inola and Claremore, about 25 miles east and northeast of Tulsa.

Emergency Medical Services Authority spokeswoman Kelli Bruer said the ambulance company transported 13 people to area hospitals, eight from a TGI Fridays restaurant, which lists its closing time as 1 a.m., four from a 24-hour Whataburger restaurant, and one person who was in the area.

St. Francis Hospital spokeswoman Lauren Landwerlin said about 30 people were treated at the hospital. Meloy said many people were taken to hospitals by private vehicles.

One of the most severely injured was in TGI Fridays and the other was inside the Whataburger.

The timing of the storm was fortunate, according to Meloy, because hundreds, if not thousands of people were in the area only hours earlier.

"It's a highly commercial area with a lot of people normally in there. There's a mall, there's a movie theater," in addition to the restaurants, Meloy said. The area also includes some industrial sites.